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Chapter 19 | Tomke Lask
(continued)
In order to know who we are, we need the Other. If we want to see where we are located in our society we need to be exposed to other ways of living and understanding the world. Interaction through bilingualism is a good thing. Multilingualism should be seen as a cultural opening, not a loss of identity.
Another important element concerns the responsible citizen who can make his own cultural choices. To develop that type of citizen, not only is a good school system necessary, but also the continual presence and involvement of parents. This is one of the main threats both to our societies and the handing down of culture.
In multicultural societies, each ethnic group has its own socio-economic niche. This guarantees fertile cooperation (Barth, 1969). Diversity is a plus, not an obstacle (John Meisel), if the State plays the role of regulator and intermediary among different communities. This is how social cohesion can be implemented in a society (Clarence Bayne).
references
Anderson, Benedict (1994), Imagined Communities, London and New York, Verso.
Barth, Fredric (1969), “Introduction,” in F. Barth, Ed., Ethnic Groups and Bounderies, Bergen/Oslo/London, University of Forlaget/George Allen & Unwin: 9-38.
Bourdieu, Pierre (1979), La distinction, Paris, Éditions de Minuit.
Bourdieu, Pierre (1984), “Espace social et genèse des classes,” in Actes de la recherche en sciences sociales, 52/53: 3-12.
Dumont, Fernand (1995), Raisons communes, Montréal, Les Éditions du Boréal.
Eliot, T. S. (1948), Notes towards the Definition of Culture, London, Faber and Faber Limited.
Lask, Tomke (1994), “Baguette Heads and “Spiked Helmets,” Children’s Construction of Nationality on the German-French Border,” in Border Approaches, Lanham, University Press of America: 63-73.
Lask, Tomke (2002), “In der Schule waren wir doch immer Freunde...,” Einführung in die Anthropologie der Grenzräume an Beispiel Leidingens, St. Ingbert, Röhrig Universitätsverlag.
Lima, Antonio Carlos de Souza (1995), Um grande cerco de paz, Poder tutelar, indianidade e formação do Estado no Brasil, Petrópolis, Vozes.
Mauss, Marcel (1969), “La Nation,” Œuvre, vol. III, Paris, Éditions de Minuit, (1920): 573-604.
Pagden, Anthony (1993), European Encounter with the New World. From Renaissance to Romantism, New Haven and London, Yale University Press.
Wilson, Thomas M. (1993), “An Anthropology of the European Community,” in Thomas M. Wilson and M. Estellie Smith, Eds., Cultural Change & the New Europe. Perspectives on the European Community, Boulder, San Francisco, Oxford, Westview Press: 1-24.
Wilson, Thomas M. and Hastings Donnan, Eds. (1998), Border Identities. Nation and State at International Frontiers, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press.
Chapter 20 | William D. Coleman > |
